


New Traditions

by flightinflame



Category: Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency (TV 2016)
Genre: Birthday, Christmas, Cinnamon Roll Dirk Gently, F/F, Father's Day, Fourth of July, Halloween, Holidays, M/M, Todd Brotzman is Bad at Feelings, Valentine's Day
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-31
Updated: 2019-07-04
Packaged: 2019-08-11 15:41:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 12,834
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16478327
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/flightinflame/pseuds/flightinflame
Summary: Growing up in Blackwing meant that Dirk missed out on a lot of holidays. But now he's with Todd, he's starting to experience them.This year, Dirk has a lot to be thankful for.Fourth of July





	1. Halloween

**Author's Note:**

> Halloween celebrated with the Bergsberg gang.

Todd had considered himself too cool for Halloween since about the age of twelve. Free candy was all well and good, but he had standards, and one of those standards involved not wearing ridiculous outfits just because someone asked him to.

He was also head over heels in love with the dorkiest man who he had ever met, which was why he was currently dressed as a zombie. Well, that and because said dork did not agree that frontman for a band was a suitable costume. _'It won't be any effort Todd, you can use that old shirt you were saying you'd get rid of some day'_ , Dirk had promised before ambushing him with flour and what was (hopefully) fake blood.

Still, this was a compromise he had been willing to make if it meant that Dirk would abandon the idea of going around Trick-or-Treating, which he was at least two decades too old for. But when he'd mentioned that, Dirk had looked disappointed, and shrugged slightly.

"Dirk?" Farah had asked, because she was nice, and because she fell straight into Dirk's traps.

"It just always sounded fun, but we never got to..." Dirk shrugged. "It doesn't matter."

That particular tone of voice meant that it mattered a lot. Farah stood up, walking around and hugging him.

"Hey, just because we can't go Trick-or-Treating, I'm sure we can sort out something."

Dirk had looked hopeful and Farah had reached for her phone.

"Hey Teenie, it's me."

***

Once Farah had decided a Halloween party was happening, she had organised it with the same precision and determination that she organised everything else. That was why they had all bundled into the car to go to Bergsberg, where Hobbs and Tina were waiting. Various halloween themed songs pelted out through the speakers as they drove along, stopping at a nearby gas station to finish sorting out their outfits.

Dirk was practically bouncing with excitement, grinning at Todd every few seconds.

"Do you think Hobbs will like it?"

Todd looked at Dirk, who was rather distressingly wearing an assortment of clothes that he had been shot, stabbed, and otherwise injured in. Because apparently when you were dressing up as a zombie it made sense to use the clothes you already had.

Unlike the two of them, Farah was dressed in a smart suit, and Todd found himself wishing that he stood a chance with her, because she looked good. Dirk looked ridiculous. But then Dirk was ridiculous, going to Halloween as a zombie holistic detective.

They got back into the car for the final journey, and that was when Mona became an issue. She was being a cartoon-style ghost, a sheet draped over nothingness with two expressive eyes. She kept floating up to the ceiling of the car, blocking Farah's view.

"Mona," Dirk warned, reaching out to tug gently on the sheet and pull her back into her seat. "I know you want to see them soon, and we will but you're putting Farah off her driving which is a bad idea and might make Farah sad, so just stay there for now?"

The sheet didn't respond, but did at least stay down for a while before she got distracted again, rising up to bump her head (did sheet ghosts have heads?) on the ceiling of the car.

Todd rubbed at the bridge of his nose and made himself smile. He could do this. He was wearing a stupid couples costume, Dirk's sister kept forgetting she wasn't actually a haunted sheet and Farah looked tense. He tried to ignore all of it and just relax.

Reaching Bergsberg was a relief. Dirk squeaked out loud when they reached the station, and he saw the ornaments that they had hung up, bats hanging from the station ceiling and pumpkins glowing on the porch.

No sooner were they emerging from the van than Hobbs opened the door. He had also chosen to go for the zombie theme, still in his uniform. He held out a bowl.

"Come in if you daaaare..." he said in his best spooky voice, before smiling at Dirk. "You look great Dirk."

"Brains?" Dirk answered with a grin, then laughed softly. "Thank you. I... really do appreciate you letting the four of us come around."

"The four of you?" Hobbs asked. Todd turned back to the car to catch Tina and Farah making out. He wasn't sure when Tina had arrived but he was impressed.

"Well, us three and Mona."

"Oh, there are others as well... didn't Farah tell you? She's got your sister coming, Todd."

Todd was really not very sure how to feel about that piece of information.

On the one hand, he loved his sister very much, and it was always a good thing to see her and spend time with her, especially now that they were back on speaking terms. On the other, they were only just back on speaking terms, and Amanda now was accompanied by four rather scary men and a rainbow creature that kept attempting to steal Todd's boyfriend. So he wasn't quite sure how he should feel.

Still, Dirk was grinning and he was pretty sure that Amanda loved Dirk enough that she wouldn't want to start a fight in front of him on a holiday. So it would probably be fine.

Dirk squeaked, launching himself forwards and picking up Mustard, who was handling the indignity of being forced to wear wings with as much sulkiness as she could manage.

"Oh! Such a cute little bat!" Dirk squeaked, apparently utterly blind to the murderous look that he was being given by the cat. Todd hid a smile.

"I thought she might be scared of spiders, so she's a bat this year." Hobbs agreed, reaching out to stroke her. Dirk patted her behind the ears, and she seemed to decide that the affection was worth the humiliation she was currently undergoing.

Tina had disentangled herself from Farah's grasp for long enough to wave at him and smile, and Todd found himself staring slightly at the dress she was wearing. She looked like a starlet from the 1920s.

"You two... are you two doing a couples costume?" he asked Farah.

"Like you can talk," Farah grinned, and Todd paused, using the window of the sheriff's department to see his reflection. He was dressed as zombie Todd, and Dirk was zombie Dirk. Their costumes didn't just match, they were managing to be infuriatingly meta. He wasn't really sure how to feel about that.

He didn't have to consider it for long, as there was the rattle of a van. Todd paused, wondering whether the Rowdies would consider dressing up for Halloween to be beneath them. Maybe they'd be too cool for it, and they wouldn't have a Dirk to beg them to dress up. Then Todd would look even more ridiculous. He waited for the door to open.

When the door opened, a cloud of smoke drifted out. For one horrible moment he thought this had been the worst trick, but then out from the smoke stepped a figure wrapped in bandages, groaning slightly. A second later, another figure stepped forwards, this one tinged with green and with two bolts at the base of his neck.

Beast jumped out, dressed in her clothes from Wendimoor, with Vogel following a moment later - he had floppy ears perched on his head and what looked like a legging stuffed with newspaper down the back of his pants. He threw back his head and howled, racing forwards and hugging Dirk enthusiastically. Dirk squeaked.

"No licking Vogel!" he yelped, as Vogel continued to try and lick his face.

A sharp whistle called Vogel back to the van, as Martin walked out. He was wearing a long cape and a pointed hat. Amanda stepped out last of all.

"You didn't bother with a costume?" Dirk asked, sounding disappointed.

"I'm in a costume!" she protested, and Vogel giggled, wrapping his arms around her affectionately and nuzzling into her side. She tolerated it for a few moments before pushing him off.

"What costume? And is Martin a...wizard?"

"Witch," Martin answered, holding up what was quite clearly a literal magic wand stolen from Wendimoor, and something that should not be being used for a Halloween prop. "And Drummer is a vampire."

"She doesn't have fangs."

"They made her talk funny!" Vogel explained. "She wath talking like thith."

Todd snorted slightly, and Amanda shot him a glare, clearly not finding the situation as funny as it was.

"So you're not a vampire?"

"I dunno, Blackwing said we were," Martin shrugged. "Don't none of us have fangs."

Todd paused, and then decided it was probably a good plan not to argue with that particular morsel of logic. Hobbs paused, then turned around to the mummy and Frankenstein.

"And you two are Amanda's friends as well?"

"Yeah, that's Cross, that's Gripps."

"I thought you would do something stranger for Halloween," Dirk admitted, and Amanda grinned.

"Well, we're being conventional monsters. It's us. Being conventional is the scariest thing."

Todd shrugged, then walked over and hugged her.

"It's good to see you."

"Thanks for inviting me." Amanda answered, and Todd shrugged slightly, not quite sure what to say.

"We all wanted you here," he said after a moment. She narrowed her eyes.

"You didn't know I was coming, did you?"

"No," Todd admitted. "But I really am glad you are here."

Amanda smirked, and whistled.

"Hey, Vogel, Todd missed you and needs a hug."

Todd got knocked down by Vogel's enthusiasm, and lay on the ground trying to breathe as Hobbs ushered the rest of them inside. Eventually, Vogel let him stand up and he hurried in to where the party was.

The lights were dimmed, and Dirk was standing next to Farah, clutching her arm a little nervously. Hobbs was doing his best spooky voice as he explained that there were worms and other things in the cauldron, and they had to reach inside for their prizes. Mona was floating near the ceiling, clearly questioning her lack of hands, and then she tumbled down, rearranging herself into a porcelain doll about the height of a toddler. There was a faint crack on her face, and a missing piece of porcelain on her arm allowing Todd to see inside. She walked forwards, hand held out, and Hobbs held the bowl at a suitable distance, clearly trying not to panic at the walking nightmare in front of him.

She reached in, blinking her glass eyes, and then pulled out some candy. Her red-stained lips twisted into a smile, and she opened the candy, passing it over to Dirk.

"Thank you," she said, giggling softly before returning to a sheet ghost.

Hobbs let out a slow breath.

"Okay, that was... that was some pretty impressive acting there sweetheart, you're welcome. Now, just let me get my breath back and then who else wants a go?"

Dirk stepped forwards, yelping as he put his hand into the bowl, squirming visibly. Todd reached in beside him for moral support.

"It's worms, isn't it?" Dirk whispered. Todd could recognise the feel of spaghetti, but at the same time Dirk's reactions were too amusing not to play with. He wiggled his fingers, and Dirk yelped, jumping away from the bowl clutching a piece of candy.

"That was horrific. How. How is that fun?" Dirk asked, but then he was eating his candy with a smile on his face, so Todd was fairly sure he hadn't been too traumatised.

Todd was definitely too old for Halloween costumes and games, but Dirk was delighted. Then it got onto spooky stories. The Rowdies and Dirk didn't share stories, but they listened, and Amanda and Tina were more than enthusiastic enough to make up for it. Mona wasn't sharing stories either, but that was mostly because she was being a fire on the floor of the station.

There was a knock on the door at the stroke of midnight, and Dirk and Todd exchanged concerned glances. Dirk went to open it, then screamed and ran to hide behind Martin.

Todd frowned, unsure if his masculinity was being challenged by not being Dirk's protector of choice, then turned towards the door.

Bart stood there, covered in blood, and he doubted that it was a costume.

"Hi Bart."

"Hey!" she greeted them, walking in and plunging her hand into the bowl of spaghetti, eating it. "There's sweets in your food."

Hobbs frowned a little, opening his mouth, and then deciding not to say anything.

"You've… come to join our party?" Dirk asked, still hiding behind Martin.

"Yeah," she answered. "And I got a case, I think. Why's you dressed funny?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Outfits list:  
> Dirk - Zombie detective  
> Todd - Zombie assistant  
> Mona - sheet ghost  
> Farah - 1920s gangster  
> Tina - 1920s gangster's moll  
> Hobbs - zombie sheriff  
> Mustard - Bat  
> Amanda - vampire (no fangs)  
> Vogel - werewolf  
> Cross - Mummy  
> Martin - Witch  
> Gripps - Frankenstein  
> Bart - Bart


	2. Todd's Birthday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Todd hadn't thought his birthday worth mentioning. Dirk and Mona disagree.

Todd placed a fresh cup of coffee on the table, and then sat down on a chair, then yelped as he was dumped on the floor, flailing on his back like an upside-down tortoise.

"Hello Todd!" Mona called, staring down at him, her forehead a little creased in concern. "Why are you on the floor?"  
"Because you were the chair I sat down in, Mona."  
"Oh." She frowned a little, then held her hand out to help him to his feet. "I'm sorry, Todd. I just wanted to say hello."  
"That's okay," Todd answered, accepting her hand and wrapping his arms around her. There was no point in getting angry with Mona at times like this, she didn't mean any harm. She smiled and returned the hug. "Where is my actual chair?"

She pointed over towards the filing cabinet, where a chair was waiting for him. A chair that wouldn't turn into an actual girl, and therefore was much more useful as a chair than Mona was. He wheeled it back into its rightful place, sitting down in it, and Mona hopped up on the desk, her legs swinging in midair, her arms wrapped around herself.

"Is everything okay Mona?"  
"No," she said, and then tilted her head slightly and shook her head. "I mean, I think it is? But I don't know. I was talking to Vogel on the phone and he said that Amanda said it was your birthday, and I'm sorry that I didn't get you a present, but I didn't know." She blinked and paused. "So I wanted to be a nice comfortable chair for you but then I forgot that I was doing that, and wasn't sure what I was going to do. I wanted to see you and talk about your birthday but then you fell over." She sighed a little, rocking where she was sitting. "Why didn't you say?"

Todd frowned, considering.   
"Where did you get a phone?"  
"Oh, I was a phone," Mona told him, nodding a little to herself. "I was pink with diamante stones!"  
"Oh, that's nice," Todd answered carefully. It was always hard to follow what Mona was thinking, but she was a sweetheart, and he wanted to be friends with her. She liked being his friend, he thought. 

But that made her question more difficult to answer. He didn't want to give an answer that made her sad.   
"I just didn't think you would be worried about that," he answered. "I'm an adult now, birthday's aren't so important to me."  
"Birthdays are important," she said, swaying from side to side. "I like birthdays. Dirk always had some cake when he was on the run, and he'd sing happy birthday to me on my birthday. It was nice. We can have a birthday too."

"My birthday was four days ago, you know that."  
"That's okay. We can have it today, or tomorrow, or the next day, or the next day. Whatever you would like." She danced a little where she was sat. "Birthdays don't have to be on birthday days, not if we have other things to do, and we were busy. That's okay. We had a case but now we don't have a case so we can do your birthday, when you'd like that."

"Thank you?" Todd answered, and frowned. "Have you told Dirk?"  
"Not yet. I didn't want to before I spoke to you because I don't want you to be sad. I don't like my friends being sad."

"I'm not sad at you, sweetie. You are a good friend." Todd hugged her, and she trilled happily, turning into a small black and white creature that he'd initially thought was a chipmunk, but had since learned was a sugar glider. She squeaked, clambering up onto his shoulder and nipping at his ear gently.  
"That a hint I should tell Dirk?" he asked, and she chirruped in response. He rolled his eyes fondly, and stretched, before picking up his coffee, taking a sip as he made his way back to their bedroom.

Dirk was sprawled out on the bed, tangled in his sheets, and snoring softly. Mona jumped down from Todd's shoulder, spreading her arms and legs so that she could glide over to him. She scurried up his body and licked his face. 

Dirk whined, trying to bat her away, but she continued to lick at him until reluctantly he opened his eyes, glancing up at her. She turned into a teddy bear.  
"Good morning Mona. Hey Todd... You look kind of worried."  
"I'm just... nervous," Todd admitted, sitting down on the edge of the bed. Dirk was immediately beside him, wrapping his arms around Todd's shoulders.  
"Whatever it is, we can fix it."

"It was my birthday a few days back," Todd admitted. "But I was so caught up with the case we were working on and the invisible unicorn that was eating all of our cereal that I didn't mention it, and then I was worrie-" Todd paused, shaking his head slightly in disbelief at the mess his life had become, and then carried on. "I was worried you'd be mad at me."  
"I'm not mad at you!" Dirk grinned. "I love birthdays with friends, those are good birthdays! Me and Mona always had cake when we remembered. I didn't always have a calendar and I don't know when my birthday is so I think we had three in one year but they're always fun and I can sort this out, if that's okay? We can invite Amanda and the Rowdies and have a big party!"

Todd sighed, wondering if perhaps he'd agreed to more than he should have.

***  
Todd became certain he had agreed to too much when he was cornered by Dirk holding a calendar.  
"What?"  
"Your birthday is going to be celebrated today," Dirk pointed out.  
"Yes? That's what you and Mona decided."  
"And Thursday is Thanksgiving."  
"Yes?"  
"You should have your sister here for Thanksgiving." Dirk grinned. "I've asked, and apparently they can stay over for the next few days, so you get to have your sister at both your slightly-belated-birthday and Thanksgiving."

"And her friends?"  
"The Rowdies are coming too Todd, of course they are. But they've promised not to eat me, and it isn't like they need much of the food. So it's sorted. The Rowdies are going to be coming for your birthday, and we are having a pizza party and popcorn and then having a sleepover."  
"Dirk, we share a bed."  
"Well, obviously." Dirk shrugged.

"Mona shares our bed half the time," Todd added on, and Dirk shrugged again, more insistently.  
"Pyjama Pizza Party and Sleepover today. And then tomorrow I'm going to help Farah with some work and Amanda said she and the boys want to go somewhere with you, and then on Wednesday she said she'd take you to visit your parents and then on Thursday we can have Thanksgiving."

Todd hesitated, knowing that once Dirk had an idea in his head, it was almost impossible to shake it, regardless of if the universe or Dirk's own stubbornness planted it.  
"Dirk, turkeys need at least to be brined overnight, and a lot of the dishes... you burned a salad last time you tried to cook, and we can't ask Farah to do it, it'll be bad for her anxiety. It's a really sweet idea. But I can't... I can't visit my parents and cook dinner. And you can't cook dinner."

"First of all, Todd, I'd like you to know that I disagree with your assessment of my cooking abilities. I am able to produce perfectly good sandwiches, and serve as a sous chef for Farah's cooking quite often. More importantly however, I have asked Sheriff Hobbs if he would be willing to do the cooking for us, and he said he would be delighted. He and Tina will be turning up early on Wednesday, and Mona and I will be assisting him whilst Farah is tasked with keeping Tina out of the kitchen and adequately distracted." Dirk did a strange movement with his face, which Todd suspected was meant to be an attempt at wiggling eyebrows.

Todd smiled and shook his head.  
"Is there any chance I can persuade you this is a bad idea?"  
"None at all. Now, we need to move a few things around, we have to set up an air bed in the office. Where are we even going to find an airbed that can fit five people?"  
Mona raised her hand, and Todd shook his head.   
"I don't think you would enjoy that experience, Mona."  
"Probably best not," Dirk agreed, then frowned to himself. "I suppose a blanket pile could work. Or they could sleep in the van if they wanted, I just don't want them getting cold."

Dirk rummaged in a desk drawer, bringing out a sheet of paper and trying to make notes. On the top of one was "TODD'S BIRTHDAY" and on the other was "THANKSGIVING", both in capitals and double underlined. He started out by working who was invited.

Realising that his input was neither needed nor wanted, Todd wandered away to go and check on Farah and try to warn her about the chaos that was about to descend upon them.

***

The growl of a van drawing up outside made Dirk tense slightly, and Todd gave him a squeeze. Dirk had mostly buried his issues with the Rowdies, but they undeniably left him uncomfortable. But they were here because Dirk had invited them, for Todd's sake. Even if this entire thing ended up as a disaster (the way it most likely would), he was flattered that Dirk had tried for him.

The door to the agency opened, and Amanda came barrelling in, followed close behind by Beast. Beast threw herself at Dirk, hugging him enthusiastically, but before Todd could see what had happened next Amanda was hugging him.  
"You're old," she told him with a grin, and he nodded, relieved to see her.  
"I wasn't sure-"  
"Dirk invited me, and he said I could tease you for being old," she explained. "Anyway, I miss you. Plus I have a point to prove."  
"What point?"  
"Martin was saying he's too old for birthdays."

"...That's the one with the glasses right?" Todd asked, and Amanda shoved him in the shoulder, sticking her tongue out at him. Todd stuck his tongue out in response before continuing. "He's older than me."  
"Yeah but still." She grinned. "Plus, Vogel is excited, I got him to promise he won't blow out your candles but he's pretty enthusiastic about the idea, especially when he gets to make a wish."

"Dirk said he invited you to thanksgiving."  
"Do you want us there?" Amanda asked bluntly, and Todd flinched. Up until that moment he hadn't been sure, but her question showed him his answer.  
"More than anything."  
"Then we'll be there," she promised. "Can't vouch for the boys' behaviour. But we'll be there."

Todd leaned in and hugged her.  
"You didn't call on my birthday," he muttered.  
"I did. You didn't answer," she told him, and then pulled away to look in his eyes. "I'm still mad at you. I don't know if I'll ever not be mad at you. But you're my brother, and Dirk is my friend, and I'm not letting your shittiness rule over me any more. So yeah, I'm here."  
She grinned. "Happy birthday."

Dirk and Beast had disappeared off into the kitchen, and the lights went off. Todd wondered if it was a power cut, before the singing started. Dirk carried in the cake, a wide smile on his face as he placed it down in front of Todd.

The cake was a store bought one, but extra sweets had been added to the sides, and there was a flower candle, and several sparklers, and what he guessed to be 35 candles on top. The entire thing was a fire hazard, and Todd took a deep breath to blow out the candles before they caused the office to catch light.

He heard the click of a camera, and saw Farah smiling at him. Some of the candles went off, but a few stayed lit. He tried again, and one continued to burn stubbornly. He tried again, then did a quick count.  
"Mona," he muttered, and the candle disappeared, and Mona turned into a large knife for use in cutting the cake. He cut slices for everyone, as Dirk took a few more pictures, and then there was pizza being ordered. He ended up on the sofa between Farah and Dirk, Amanda flopped back against his legs with her boys around her. Mona was a teddy bear in his lap, and a ridiculous sci-fi movie was playing on the television. Dirk screamed every time a monster appeared, but he seemed to be having fun.   
Dirk kept grinning as he glanced over at him, his hand holding onto Todd's. Todd found himself smiling too.

He hadn't wanted to bother anyone, when he had let his birthday slip by unnoticed. In previous years it hadn't mattered much. But this year, things were different, and sometimes different could be amazing.


	3. Thanksgiving

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This year, Dirk has a lot to be thankful for.

Dirk was seriously considering going and hiding in an upstairs closet until the day was over. 

It wasn't that anyone was angry - if anything, he was startled by the effort they were going to to let him know that they weren't angry, that he honestly wasn't in any form of trouble. In the past, being told you weren't in trouble meant that you were, and you were in so much trouble that they weren't giving you details yet, were letting you stew in your own terror first of all. But that wasn't the case here.

It was just that there was a lot that needed to be done, and Dirk was worried he'd forget something important, and then Thanksgiving would be ruined, and then maybe next year he wouldn't be invited. They'd all have a Thanksgiving, and when it came to saying what they were thankful for, they'd start off with the fact that he wasn't there to ruin things.

"Hey." A hand landing on his shoulder made Dirk jump, and he looked up to see Hobbs frowning at him.  
"You okay there?"  
"Just..." Dirk hesitated. He'd set this whole thing up, and he knew he didn't have to hide away, it was just that he was concerned. He took a couple of deep breaths, reminding himself that he was safe, that he was among friends who were willing to support him. "It's just... I'm worried I'll do something wrong and ruin Thanksgiving," he admitted, then yelped as the knife he had been using turned into a puppy which launched herself up into his arms.

"You won't," Hobbs said quickly, then shrugged. "And even if you messed up, you wouldn't ruin Thanksgiving. You matter more to us than having a nice meal. Only thing that would ruin it'd be you getting hurt, but hopefully we can avoid you getting injured in some kind of turkey-related disaster."  
"I hope so," Dirk agreed, flashing him a smile. Knowing Hobbs didn't think he was going to ruin everything was a big help, and made it all feel a bit more manageable. He was still worried, in case Hobbs was wrong and he did ruin everything, but he had to hope for the best.

"Let's go through our list, okay?" Hobbs suggested, reaching past the bouncy puppy to pick up a piece of paper - one that had been started by Farah, with columns listing times and measurements, and then continued by Hobbs with such instructions as _add some onions_. Hobbs pointed out the steps that they had already done in different recipes - the cranberries were cooking on the stove, the pumpkin pie was cooking in the oven, and the turkey was dry brining in the fridge. In the morning there would be the finishing touches to add to various items, and a few other things like the salad to start from scratch, and then it would be time to eat. 

Dirk checked each list three times, in case something had gone wrong somewhere, or pages were stuck together or missing.

The pages had been individually numbered, and were all where they should have been. So far, they were apparently three minutes ahead of time, and everything was going well.

"Just got a few more ingredients - apples and raisins for the pie," Hobbs reminded. "And then we can leave it for a bit, see how the girls are getting on with their movie."  
Dirk nodded, leaning over and embracing Hobbs tightly.  
"Thank you for your help, Dirk murmured, and Hobbs hugged him back.  
"Thanks for inviting us."  
"We wanted you," Dirk said simply, flashing a momentary smile at Hobbs which he returned.

"Run me through what we've got?" Hobbs prompted, and Dirk frowned and considered. "Turkey gravy stuffing, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, cranberry jelly, cornbread, apple pie, pumpkin pie, pecan pie… That's a lot of pie."  
"Pie is good." Hobbs grinned. "And we've got a few of us there. There's you, me, Tina, Farah, Todd, Todd's sister Amanda, and her four guys, Mona might want some, and Beast. Is that it?"  
"I think so," Dirk agreed, a little startled to hear how big a family he had now. For a long time he had been alone, and now he was surrounded by people who loved and cared about him. He couldn't prevent the smile that broke out, and he hugged Hobbs tightly.

"And don't you worry Dirk, there'll be enough leftovers for everyone."  
"Thank you," Dirk grinned, and then quickly triple checked the lists, before going to sit on the couch and watch a film while Mona tried to be various different table-decorations and he advised her on their appearance.

***

Mona had settled on starting the meal as a rainbow-striped cornucopia, overspilling with a range of flowers and autumn leaves. Dirk thought that she looked stunning, and was careful to take several photographs of her beside the food on the table, while the others were still doing other things, so that she would be able to appreciate her performance later. 

He made sure she was comfortable, and then helped Hobbs to lay out the remaining dishes.  
"There's a lot of food here."  
"It's okay. We can take any leftovers back to the station, Tina gets hungry sometimes, or Amanda and her guys can - I bet they eat a lot." Hobbs shrugged.  
"Well… they don't tend to eat normal food, but - well, I suppose Beast eats normal food, and Amanda definitely does, and Vogel has rather a sweet tooth - but that aside, I think they will probably be willing to make an exception for this."

"They are like you right?" Hobbs asked.  
"Well, I'm a detective and they're energy thieves, but yes, they were in the top-secret prison too."  
"You know the coolest people." Hobbs grinned.  
"I do." Dirk smiled, reaching out to pick up a small piece of cornbread, and eating it quickly. "I know you."

Hobbs beamed, then checked over the lists again. Dirk suspected that removing Farah from the food preparations had been a good plan - he didn't want to put her under any unnecessary stress, and she was a little too precise with measurements. He still had no idea how he was meant to measure two thirds of a teaspoonful. But she was cuddling with Tina, and Todd and Amanda appeared to be arguing over film selection, and Mona was on the table ready to be the centre of attention, and everything was good. Even the Rowdy Three, currently waiting in the van, had promised to be careful during the meal.

Dirk wasn't sure how long those good intentions would last, but he was grateful that they were trying, and hoped that if a food fight were to break out nothing too important would be damaged. He'd been afraid of them for decades, and now they were somewhere between a mild annoyance and company that he was grateful for. It was strange how things were changing, how relationships he'd thought of as fact for so long were still able to transform. 

Todd had said he was only allowed to say a little bit when they went around and said what people were thankful for, so he still didn't know entirely what he wanted to say. There was just so much good in his life. There was Todd's smile, and Farah's laugh, and Mona's enthusiasm, there were visits from friends and the knowledge that he wasn't alone. He paused, and took a couple more photographs of the table.

"We'd better get everyone in here then." Hobbs grinned, and Dirk went to do just that, sticking his head around the door of the living space. He and Todd had moved most of their furniture around, ending up with a pile of beanbag chairs by one wall (currently occupied by Amanda and Beast, and likely soon to be full of the Rowdies), a sofa in the middle of the room (Tina and Farah were cuddled up, as Todd sat awkwardly on the edge), some space on the carpet, another sofa and an armchair. Everything else was pushed to one side, and if drinks did get spilled, it wouldn't cause any real damage. Dirk tried not to grin too widely as he looked at the room.  
"Food's ready!"

There was an enthusiastic whoop from Tina, who tried to jump off the sofa and found herself tumbling back into it. Farah laughed, raising her hands to shield herself and then to push Tina to her feet, whilst Amanda whistled and the Rowdies raced up to greet her. It was Vogel who raced forwards first, looking at the pile of food.  
"That's so much food Boss! If we eat it all we're gonna be sick."

"Don't be sick Vogel," Amanda advised, walking out and embracing Dirk and then Hobbs. "You two did a wonderful job, it looks delicious."  
Dirk could feel his face heating up and smiled, pretending he couldn't hear Gripps listing off the calories in various combinations of food and then doing advanced calculus with the numbers chosen. 

"Who wants the first plate?" Hobbs asked, and Dirk considered.  
"Amanda's youngest."  
She stuck her tongue out at Vogel and at Todd, and then took the plate, staring at the array of food before her and trying to work out where she could possibly start.

***

It took a while for everyone to fill their plates, and Vogel was on seconds by the time everyone had food. Dirk gently lifted Mona from the table, hugging her against him as she returned to her human form.  
"You were wonderful," he promised, moving to sit with Todd on the second sofa.  
"The best table decoration I've seen," Farah added, and she beamed at them, doing a joyful little curtsey and then skipping over to pick up her own plate, sitting on the floor near Dirk and resting her head against his knee.

"You took a picture?" she asked hopefully.   
"I took several," Dirk promised her. He knew at times it was frustrating for her that she couldn't see her own performances, but at least the solution was relatively simple.

"What now?" Cross asked, his mouth half-full of Thanksgiving dinner. Dirk sat up a little straighter, taking it on himself to explain.  
"Today we are here to say thank you to what is important to us. So we all need to go around and say a thing!" He grinned at the Rowdies, then paused. "Todd, you want to start?"  
"I'm thankful that I've got the chance to be a better person than I was, and that I didn't succeed in pushing way the people that mattered to me."  
"I'm glad I've got Farah!" Tina answered. "And that Hobbs didn't give up on me when I needed someone."  
"I'm thankful for Tina," Farah echoed, reaching out and squeezing her hand. "And that I've found people who like me for the weirdo that I am."  
"I'm thankful for all of you," Hobbs smiled. "and for the fact that life stopped being quite so boring."  
"The Rowdies," Martin answered, toasting with his beer.  
"Thankful for Drummer pulling us out of that crazybad place," Cross added.  
"Thankful that there are now sixty fingernails I can paint," Gripps said thoughtfully.   
"Gud foods and frends," Beast added.  
"I'm thankful for my family," Amanda said. "New and old. And that my brother's stopped being quite so much of an asshole."  
"I'm thankful for the breeze, and for singing, and for stars, and for being a good friend," Mona said softly.

Dirk swallowed slightly, feeling all eyes on him, suddenly unsure of what to say. He licked his lips.  
"I'm thankful for this. For somewhere I belong, and people that I love. For old friends and new ones. For a purpose, and people to share it with. For home." He leaned against Todd, trying to blink back tears. Todd was holding him, and he almost whimpered, overcome by emotion as, around him, the others began to eat.

Todd pressed a kiss to his forehead.  
"Come on, food's getting cold."


	4. Christmas

"Hey, Dirk?" Todd asked, nuzzling against Dirk's shoulder and smiling at how he had burrowed into the blankets, curled up beside him and searching for warmth the way he always did. The alarm clock beside them said that it was eight in the morning, and normally Dirk wouldn't stir for another hour at least, but a brush of Todd's lips to his cheek made him open his eyes.

"Yes Todd?"  
"Merry Christmas," Todd murmured, and Dirk smiled, cuddling closer.

The past few celebrations, they had both been surrounded by family and friends. This afternoon they were going to meet up with Hobbs, Tina and Farah, while New Year would be spent with Amanda and her friends. But today, this morning, was for the two of them.

Mona was being an ornament on top of the Christmas tree. But everyone else was busy with their own lives, and that meant that this morning was just the two of them. Todd liked time with his friends, enjoyed seeing them all interacting and being happy. But it was good to just cuddle up beside Dirk, and take things at their own pace.

"Merry Christmas," Dirk echoed, smiling. He reached down, and held Todd's hand. Todd held his hand in return, stroking his thumb over the back of Dirk's hand. Dirk smiled at him.

"We've got no plans before two o'clock," Todd reminded him. Dirk yawned and closed his eyes, snuggling up against Todd.  
"Nap time?"  
Todd smiled fondly, grabbing his phone and starting to play games with one hand as his other hand carefully brushed his fingers through Dirk's hair. Dirk nuzzled into his arms, and was soon snoring a little. Todd laughed slightly, keeping it quiet so that he didn't disturb Dirk. 

The alarm clock had ticked over to ten before Dirk opened his eyes, smiling and then going to the bathroom, going to wash up and then walking back in. He had his hands behind him, and was clearly hiding a gift and card behind him, but he was trying to sneak past, so Todd pretended that he couldn't see. Dirk settled down in the blankets, curling up there, and then reaching beneath his pillow. He held out a pale blue envelope.

Todd took it, opening it and smiling when he saw the card inside. It was full of little dancing robins and snowmen. Inside, Dirk had written _Todd, Thank you for making this the best year, and the best Christmas, EVER. Love, Dirk_ Ever had been written in three different colours, and double underlined. Todd grinned, hugging him.   
"That's a lovely card."

"Thanks..." Dirk smiled, and then squeaked as Todd held out his own card. He opened it, glancing at Dirk fondly.  
"Thank you!" Dirk beamed, then squealed when he saw that the card said _To my Boyfriend_. "You... you bought this?"  
"I bought this for my boyfriend," Todd agreed.   
"Thank you." Dirk smiled at him, placing the card carefully up on the bedside cabinet, then pulled out a present.

"Here you go..." Dirk held it out proudly.   
Todd took it and opened it, smiling at the CD that Dirk had found of his songs. Dirk grabbed another one, handing it over. "And this one."  
There were t-shirts, and then the next one had socks, and the one after that had a blanket covered in musical notes.

"That's... that's a lot of presents there Dirk."  
"I just kept seeing nice things. There were so many things I wanted to get for you, Todd. I've never... well, Mona is difficult about what she likes, you know? She can be whatever she wants so... but you can't do that. There are lots of things for you. You need nice things."

"Thanks Dirk," Todd answered, ruffling his hair. He held out a rainbow tie for Dirk, and then he held out a suspiciously guitar-shaped present. Dirk stared.  
"What's that?" he asked curiously.  
"Dirk, you're a detective," Todd pointed out.

"I am," Dirk agreed. "And it's a present for me."  
"It is," Todd said with a laugh. "Well, if you can't guess it, why don't you open it-"  
Dirk ripped off the paper, gasping when he saw a bright yellow guitar inside it.  
"Is this for me?"  
"I thought I could teach you how to play," Todd told him, and Dirk smiled, kissing him once more.

"Thanks..."  
"So what now?"  
Dirk smirked a little, wiggling his eyebrows and pulling him closer.

***

Mona was still a silver angel on top of the tree when they eventually got downstairs. Dirk lifted her off, hugging her for a moment and then placing her carefully on the sofa as they grabbed up various boxes and bags of gifts. Todd paused on his way to the car, dialling Amanda. 

There were two rings before she picked up.  
"Hey sis," he greeted her.  
"Hey. What's up?"  
"Merry Christmas."  
"Yeah, you too loser. Dirk still good for new years?"  
"Yeah." Todd smirked a little. "How are you going to kiss four different guys at midnight?"  
"Well, for a start Vogel doesn't do kisses. So that's three. And we'll work out something."  
"A four way kiss huh?"  
"You'll see it in a week," Amanda answered, laughing. "You having a good day?"  
"Yeah. Taking it easy with Dirk, then off to see Hobbs and Tina. We had fun."  
"I will see you soon. Make sure you take care of Dirk okay? He deserves better than you, but he seems pretty sure that you're what he wants."  
"Yeah, I know. I'm damn lucky."  
"Well I'll see you soon. Got presents for you."  
"Thanks sis."  
"It's okay. That's what Christmas is for." With that, she hung up. Dirk looked over.

"Amanda talking to you?"  
"Apparently," he agreed with a smile. "So that's a Christmas miracle all of its own." He got into the driving seat, before Dirk could try, and they headed off towards Hobbs.

***

Parking outside the sheriff's department in Bergsberg, Todd could already see Farah and Tina at the window, waving enthusiastically. Dirk waved back, and the two of them scrambled out from the car. Hobbs threw open the doors of the station, walking forwards and embracing the two of them.  
"Good to see you Dirk. You too Todd, you're looking well. And where's -" Dirk held out a squeaky toy and Hobbs grinned, hugging her.  
"Hey there Miss Mona, you've been missed."

She turned into a human to embrace him and smiled, then ran in and squeaked at the decorations inside.   
"It's amazing!" she yelled, then ran out, grabbing Todd and Dirk by the wrists and pulling them inside.   
"Dinner won't be too long now," Hobbs told them. "Food, then presents, and then I thought we could do a movie and a few glasses of wine. You can stay here tonight."  
"First room we ever shared," Dirk grinned, and Todd rolled his eyes.  
"You do realise that most people's idea of a romantic night isn't a prison cell."  
"I know," Dirk agreed. "But... it was there that I found out that you cared. That you'd looked for me. That..." He sighed, and shook his head. "Maybe Hobbs can let you borrow his sofa again?"

"Nah, weirdly romantic Christmas night in a prison cell it is," Todd answered, smirking. 

He'd never really cared about Christmas, but having time with Dirk was different. Seeing how happy he was, how at ease he looked. That was something he wanted. And for Dirk, this was a special time of the year. So he was determined to make the most of it.

"Todd?" Dirk asked quietly. "I brought my guitar, if you want to give me a first lesson?"  
"I'd like that," Todd answered. He wasn't entirely sure if Dirk was going to be any good at it, but he thought that the two of them could have fun together. 

"Maybe next year, we can play some Christmas songs."  
"That'd be good," Todd answered. There would have been a time in the past when he would have refused, would have dreaded the thought of a year of ridiculous beginner Christmas music. But this time, he thought it sounded good. He'd have to ask Amanda if she was willing to play drums for them.


	5. New Years Eve

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Celebrating the start of the New Year.

Dirk had been carefully practicing on his guitar basically every day since Christmas. Which meant that over the past week, Todd had developed quite a headache. But at the same time, he could tell that Dirk was doing what he could to get it right, and he was improving. It was possibly going to take until next Christmas for him to successfully hold down a song, but he'd got better than where he had started, which was something.

Between that and a sudden and rather urgent case involving exploding lava lamps, the period between Christmas and New Year had faded away into nothing, and soon it was time for the year to end. Farah had gone to visit Tina and Hobbs, and soon the Rowdies would be arriving at the agency. Todd knew that wasn't exactly going to make things quieter, but the break from Dirk picking out _Jingle Bells_ on his guitar carefully and agonisingly slowly was a relief in itself. He wanted to share this with Dirk, was glad for it - just wished the actual learning process could be a little less painful. He felt sudden admiration for his own parents encouraging him and Amanda to learn when they were younger.

"You better put the guitar upstairs before Amanda's gang turns up," Todd reminded him. Dirk nodded, going to do so, as Todd checked downstairs to ensure the agency floor was mostly free of any valuables. Amanda had said that they weren't going to destroy anything, but Todd didn't want to risk anything going wrong.

He had just about gotten everything tidy when the familiar growl of the Rowdies' van echoed down the road. Dirk paled a little but smiled, picking up a cushion which Todd had to assume was Mona and cuddling it tightly.

A few seconds later, the front door was pushed open, and chaos barrelled in. 

Amanda walked straight to Dirk, hugging him tightly. After a second he returned her embrace, closing his eyes and then smiling as he looked at her.  
"You look so happy."  
"So do you." She smiled. "He better be taking good care of you. He knows what happens if he's not." Her words were supported by some rather concerning growls from the men standing behind her. 

Todd laughed nervously, not sure whether or not he had any chance of getting a hug. He waited to find out. After a few moments, she reached out and embraced him - briefer than Dirk had got, but a hug nonetheless. He was glad for it.

"Farah's gone to see her girl?" Amanda asked, then sighed. "Shame. She's cool. You should get them to come here one day."  
"Hopefully," Dirk agreed, and there was discussion from the rest. 

"Anyway, this is for her." Amanda placed a present down on the table. "This is for you." She handed Todd a parcel. He opened it, a little nervous about what he might find, and sighed to see what looked like a giant pill inside it. He poked it and it squeaked slightly, and he lifted it from the wrapping to see it had "Stress toy - squeeze when sad" written down one side.  
"Seriously?"  
She just grinned and gave him a thumbs up, before handing Dirk a gift of his own. He opened it and stared.  
"You got me a CD of Todd's music?"  
"Yeah. Thought you might like it."

"It's... it's kind of yelly," Dirk admitted. "But I like hearing Todd."  
"Where's Mona?"  
Dirk raised the teddy, and Amanda reached over to pat her on the head, before pulling out a knitted hat.  
"Saw this. Thought you could wear it if you're human shaped, or use it as a bed when you aren't."  
Dirk nodded seriously, taking the hat and placing it on top of the bear's ears, arranging it carefully so her eyes weren't covered.  
"She says thank you," he explained, making the bear dance a little. Amanda smiled.  
"What'd you get me?"

Todd handed over the gifts he'd picked up - a small first aid kit, a notebook, some makeup he knew she liked, a roll mat and some books. Dirk held out a book of his own.  
"I just saw this-"  
"Thanks Dirk. Used to love that as a kid, haven't seen it for a while," Amanda answered, hugging Dirk again. Todd tried not to feel offended at being overlooked. They were making progress.

"So what do we do until midnight?" Dirk asked curiously.  
"Put on some music, drink, dance," Amanda answered, and Vogel whooped in delight. Dirk looked slightly afraid.  
"You can cuddle on the sofa with me and Mona if you like," Todd suggested, and Dirk nodded quickly, cuddling up and letting Amanda sort out the music. 

After a little while, the Rowdies joined them on the beanbags, sprawling across each other totally naturally. Todd had ordered some pizza, so they were all eating that, and midnight was ticking closer as they shared stories.

Todd still had no idea what to make of Amanda's friends, but he'd never seen her this happy. Dirk was happy too, curled up against Todd's side, his fingers interlaced with Todd's own. Every so often, his eyelids would droop, and Todd would kiss his forehead to wake him up.  
"'M awake," Dirk murmured, not very convincingly.

"We're about five minutes to midnight," Todd told him, and Dirk sat up straighter.  
"Are we doing the arms thing?"  
"The arms thing?" Todd asked, and Dirk shrugged, crossing his arms over his chest and singing:  
"Four old acquaintances, we forgot, and always brought behind, four old acquaintances, we forgot, for the sake of old land signs".

"Those aren't the lyrics," Cross muttered. Todd was still at a loss, but Amanda found a video of the British ceremony. She put it on the television, fiddling with the time stamps to sync it up. Martin was handing out beers, and a countdown began on the television. 

Todd took Dirk's hand, watching the countdown, and then leaning in to kiss Dirk. Dirk kissed back, his arms around him. In the background, Todd knew his sister was kissing her boyfriends, but he was too distracted by Dirk in his arms to look. Then the beers were being knocked together, and reluctantly Todd pulled away, looking Dirk in the eyes.  
"Happy New Year."  
"Happy New Year," Dirk echoed, taking a swig of his beer.

The video stream they were watching showed people forming into circles and holding hands. After a moment's confusion, Todd shrugged and copied them, linking hands with Dirk and Amanda and singing. 

It fit in a way. The year with Dirk was bound to be strange and confusing, so it might as well start off like that.


	6. Valentine's Day

Todd did not like Valentine’s day. It was an overly commercialised pile of shit, designed to guilt trip people into spending more money in an attempt to show affection. Flowers and chocolates were temporary and overpriced, and as a child the pressure to hand out cards to everyone had been stressful. The entire day was a waste of time and money, and utterly pointless.

Dirk had a slightly different view of the day. As soon as bubblegum pink decorations started appearing in the stores he pulled Todd in to have a look, spending a long time staring at each of the cards in turn.  
"Dirk, I'm right here," Todd muttered.  
"Good." Dirk grinned. "You can tell me which ones you like."

"It doesn't work like that," Todd tried to explain, even though he knew in his heart that Dirk wasn't going to listen. As though in response, Dirk just grinned and held up another card. 

Todd wasn't entirely sure if Dirk was doing this deliberately or not, so he just gave up and walked out of the shop. Dirk trailed behind him a few moments later, a smile on his face.  
"Todd, what can we do for Valentines?"  
"Do we have to do anything?"  
"Farah put in to have it off a month ago. Her and Tina are going to watch a movie and they're going swimming and..." He paused and shrugged. "It just sounded like fun, that's all." His words were accompanied by him seeming to shrink in on himself, and Todd reminded himself that he needed to not be the Worst Boyfriend Ever, because Dirk deserved more than that.

"What do you want to do?" he asked, and regretted it a moment later as he saw Dirk's eyes light up with a million different ideas.  
"Can I plan it? Please?"  
"Go for it." Todd sighed, fairly certain he wouldn't be able to hold Dirk back now that he had an idea. The best he could do was just let it happen, and try and ride out whatever waves were coming his way. Dirk practically shrieked and then literally ran off. 

Todd rolled his eyes, and started to walk back to the agency at a more sedate pace.

He arrived to find that Dirk had several pieces of paper spread around him, and seemed to be making notes on all of them.  
"Dirk? Whatever you do, it'll be great."  
The thing was, Todd meant that. He hated the idea of Valentine’s day, but he was a little surprised to realise that he didn't necessarily hate the idea of Valentine’s day with Dirk. It actually sounded almost fun. Not as good as a normal day with Dirk, but definitely the right side of tolerable.

Dirk looked up at him and grinned.  
"Thanks. Don't worry too much about the gifts okay? I heard what you were saying to Farah about it being commercialised, we can set a minimum spend."  
"I'd have thought you wanted all the fuss you could get," Todd admitted.  
"I want it for us," Dirk answered. "And that means you need to not hate it."

Todd leaned in and kissed him softly, because occasionally, for all his irritating habits, Dirk could be unbelievably sweet. Dirk smiled back, and then shooed him away.  
"Don't read my notes you spy!" He laughed as he said it, and Todd found himself laughing back.

 

***

It had been a week before Valentine’s that they had shared that particular exchange, and ever since Dirk had been almost surprisingly sneaky about whatever he had planned. A couple of times he had caught him deep in conversation with a teddy bear or squeaky toy (which Todd assumed was Mona, more in an attempt to preserve his own sanity than to defend Dirk's), but whenever he was spotted Dirk went quiet.

The evening before, Farah had hugged them both goodbye, and promised to call and check in, then picked up the panic pete doll and headed to the car. That had startled Todd.  
"She's... you're taking Mona?"  
"Her and Hobbs are going to have a nice day, they were going to watch some films and she can play with Mustard," Dirk explained. "Neither of them are interested in romance stuff, so we thought this would be a nice idea instead."

Todd shrugged a little, not wanting to argue when the idea kind of made sense.  
"Well, have fun." He waved the two of them off, and then turned to Dirk.  
"I don't suppose you feel like sharing your plans?"  
"Not yet," Dirk said firmly. "They're tomorrow plans." He leaned in and kissed Todd's cheek. "All you have to do is be here, and trust me."

"I do, Dirk," Todd muttered, because even though the entire situation was ridiculous, the truth was that he trusted Dirk more than anything.

Dirk smiled at him, and pulled him towards bed. Todd rolled his eyes and followed him.

***

Todd woke up to the feeling of Dirk's fingers brushing through his hair. He felt calm there, comfortable. He took a few deep breaths, and tried a smile, lifting up his head to look at Dirk.

Dirk gazed down at him fondly, and Todd tried not to visibly brace himself. He'd seen enough of Dirk's notes to know that he would have to expect rather a lot today. There had been mentions of meals and flowers and chocolate, and he reminded himself that today mattered to Dirk, and Dirk mattered to him. He would survive whatever it was that Dirk decided to throw at him, because Dirk deserved him trying with this. 

Dirk leaned in and kissed his forehead, and he gazed up at him.  
"Do I get to find out what the plans are for today yet?"  
"Do you want to?" Dirk offered. "I had planned for it to all be a surprise, but if you'd rather not-"  
"I can wait," Todd answered, and he knew that was the right answer when Dirk's face lit up.

"Pancakes for breakfast," Dirk announced firmly, picking up a notepad and flicking through a few pages until he found what he wanted. He grabbed a pen and made a show of ticking the first item off, before scurrying downstairs. Todd lay under the blankets, relaxing, until he thought through what had just happened. Dirk had headed down to the kitchen to cook. That thought had him on his feet in an instant, racing over to see what was happening, trying to prepare himself for carnage.

He found that Dirk was standing by the stove, smiling, some pancakes in the pan in front of him, and Todd was relieved to see that there was a bottle of pre-mixed pancake mix beside him.  
"Thanks," he murmured, trying to pretend that he hadn't just run across the apartment in fear of what he might find. Dirk smiled at him, so at least he seemed oblivious to what was going on.

"You can take a seat. Farah talked me through this bit," Dirk explained, and reluctantly Todd walked away, reminding himself they had good insurance. Then, a few minutes later, Dirk walked in carrying two plates of pancakes. He placed one in front of Todd.  
"I thought maybe you could play some guitar after breakfast? And then we could go for a walk, there are some botanical gardens nearby I'd like to visit, and then..." He hesitated and shrugged a little. "Maybe we could watch a movie?" He was smiling as he said it, so Todd was pretty sure that there were all kinds of other details, but he still appreciated the fact he had some ideas to hold on to. He began to eat, and Dirk passed him some tea.  
"Oh!" Dirk paused, fishing under his chair and pulling out a small box. "I got you a present."

Todd opened it curiously, grinning when he saw what was in the box. There were a couple of CDs of music he'd liked when he was younger, a small kitten plushie, and a few new plectrums. There was absolutely nothing awful or suspiciously pink, or overly romantic.  
"Amanda helped me decide," Dirk admitted. Todd nodded, and hurried over to the television, reaching behind it for the gift he'd got - some teas shipped over from England, and a DVD he thought Dirk might like. Dirk tore open the packet and grinned, leaning in to kiss him.  
"Perfect," he whispered, and Todd felt himself blush slightly, glad he had decided to give in to Amanda's persistent questioning about what it was he was getting Dirk.

"Can you play something now?" Dirk asked, and Todd realised that he really meant it. That when Dirk had tried to plan the perfect day, it included him playing. He didn't have the words for that, but he nodded and hoped Dirk understood.

Dirk smiled, sitting down on the sofa and pulling Todd over to sit beside him. Todd escaped his grip for long enough to grab his guitar, before resuming play, singing softly to Dirk under his breath. Dirk sat there smiling, gazing at him with a fondness that made Todd's own heart race.

After a couple of songs, he stretched and put the guitar beside.  
"What now?"  
"I thought… well, my first thought was the aquarium but-"  
"Dirk, you know we're banned from the aquarium."  
"I know. Look, it wasn't my fault, that squid was shifty and needed further investigation-" Dirk started on the familiar argument, then paused and shook his head. "The important point is we couldn't do the aquarium because of reasons."  
"Those reasons being you."  
"Those reasons being unimportant." Dirk cleared his throat, shaking his head slightly, and then crossing his arms with determination. "The point is, having discounted the aquarium, I thought the botanical gardens would be good. Plus I walked around them last weekend, and briefly yesterday, and they appear to be absolutely hunch-free. So assuming no interdimensional portals opened up in the last few hours, we should be able to visit it and get home to continue our day."

Todd stared at him.  
"You really gave this a lot of thought?"  
"I've got several pages of notes of how to try and avoid... me... happening and spoiling our day."  
"Dirk..." Todd reached out, squeezing his hand, feeling a little pained at Dirk's words. "You do know that I like you, even when things... don't always go quite to plan."  
"Thanks," Dirk answered, and there was honesty there. Todd was good at making him feel like he wasn't a problem, and Todd was proud of that. He leaned over, resting his forehead on Todd's shoulder. "Botanical gardens? I know you didn't want flowers, so I thought seeing some-"

Todd kissed Dirk, which made Dirk be quiet much to Todd's relief.  
"Let's go look at some flowers."  
It turned out that Dirk's favourite flower, of all of the ones at the garden, was the Rafflesia. Which was huge, and smelled bad. Todd was a little surprised that Dirk liked that one most (given the smell) but he could see it was kind of impressive. And he enjoyed looking at the cacti and succulents, wondering if they'd be able to put some in the office.

After a while Dirk dragged him away to get some ice cream, and then after that Dirk walked with him to a stream, watching the water.  
"It's February," Todd muttered around his ice cream. "It's too cold for ice cream."  
"You're still eating it," Dirk pointed out, and Todd shrugged.  
"Of course I am. You bought it."

Dirk laughed slightly at that and Todd found himself grinning, unable to help feeling a little smug at the fact he had made Dirk laugh, because in his mind Dirk's laughter was the most wonderful sound the world had to offer. The two of them ended up wandering around side by side for a little while, until the cold drove them back to the shelter of the couch. Todd curled up beside Dirk, and Dirk looked at him curiously.  
"You're enjoying today?"  
"I am," Todd agreed, and Dirk grinned.

"What now?"  
"I thought we could watch Die Hard and eat pizza," Dirk explained. "I thought about booking a restaurant but I know you don't like them, but this..." He shrugged a little. "It feels more us, you know?"  
"That... that sounds good," Todd agreed, finding the DVD for the film while Dirk placed their normal pizza order. He kissed Dirk softly, and Dirk looked up at him, his eyes full of love.  
"I did okay today?"  
"You did great," Todd promised, and he meant it. He was amazed. He'd never have planned a Valentines that had consisted of pancakes, botanical gardens, ice cream and pizza. But it was perfect, and he was glad that Dirk had ideas like this, because it gave him someone to share them with, and allowed him to really enjoy the time that they spent together.


	7. Father's Day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Slightly bitter-sweet this time, because this is a difficult day for Dirk, but he's got his friends to help him through.  
> Thanks to Lourdes for a fast turn around time, and Juniper for the suggestion - sorry it came out angsty.

Father's Day wasn't an easy day for Dirk. He'd been watching it on the calendar, counting the days as it ticked down towards it, and he'd been feeling a little sick because he didn't know what he wanted to do. Part of him wanted to just hide under a blanket as shops filled their windows with cards and potential gifts. It was a couple of days before when he realised he couldn't just avoid it.  
"Are you... are you going home?" he asked Todd carefully when they got to the office on Thursday morning. "I mean, you're a vital part of the agency, but if you need to go and see your family I suppose we will be able to manage without you this once. Just don't make a habit of it."

"What?" Todd paused, then glanced at the calendar. "Shit, no, I have to send a card but I'm not... I think they'd rather see Amanda, and I don't... I don't want to have another discussion about why I decided to lie. I think I'd rather spend the day with you and Farah."

Dirk flinched. He hadn't even thought of Farah, about how she had only just lost her father - how the past year had taken both Patrick Spring and her biological father from her.  
"Yeah."  
He looked up as Farah walked into the agency, carrying some coffees.  
"Um... Does… does anyone have any plans for this weekend?" Dirk asked with false brightness, already trying to think of what he could suggest. A meal together or something, maybe.

"Oh..." Farah hesitated. "Well, um... Hobbs invited us. All of us, only he was worried you might be upset so I said I'd ask, and every time I've tried you've just looked so... worried, about the whole thing, and I didn't know if you had anything you wanted to do, so... I was going to ask later today."  
"Oh." Dirk considered, nodding slowly. Seeing Hobbs made sense for Farah at least, and Hobbs had always been kind to him and Todd. "I guess that would work. Thank you."  
"It's okay... Dirk, we don't have to if you'd rather not make a fuss."  
"I..." Dirk paused, trying to decide what it was that he wanted. "I guess we can go along, but... I'm not making a card. Okay?" He looked at them, feeling his pulse jumping slightly. "I'm not making him a card."

"Okay." Todd said quickly, his hand resting on Dirk's shoulder, thumb brushing against it to soothe him. "Do you want to talk about that?"  
Dirk hesitated, and then bit his lip, before nodding.  
"I... Riggins knew I liked drawing, so... I used to make him father's day cards. Like... Like I... I mean. He was like a father to me. My parents were... dead, because of me."  
"Because of Priest," Todd interrupted, and Dirk shrugged a little.  
"He wouldn't have come looking if I'd kept hidden."  
"It doesn't work like that," Todd said, sounding surprisingly sincere despite parroting Dirk's words at him.

Dirk shrugged.  
"And like... on my birthday, or rather the anniversary of me coming to Blackwing, Riggins would bring me some kind of present and a card, so… I thought it would be nice, if I made him a card? And that way I could have some crayons. But... it's just... it made it okay, didn't it? If I told him he was a great dad."  
"No." Todd sighed, and wrapped his arms around Dirk's shoulders. "You didn't... it wasn't right for them to kidnap you all, or test you, or anything. You just wanted to make him happy because he was in charge."  
"It... it wasn't just that," Dirk whispered. "I wanted him to be proud of me."

"I wanted my dad to be proud of me too," Farah muttered, guiding Dirk over to the sofa and sitting beside him, Todd on the other side. Dirk tensed a little - Farah had barely spoken about her father since his death. She swallowed, cuddling up before continuing. "I was never good enough, because I was a girl, because I was… anxious, and..." She glanced down at the floor. "Because I'm gay. But I tried. So no, you don't have to give anyone a card you don't want to, and if you don't want to see him that day that's fine. We can tell Hobbs we have had a case come up. He and Tina were going to a movie and having a barbecue, they can do that without us there."

Dirk looked at her, frowning.  
"But you want to go?"  
"I do. But I want to be with you more, and if you need to not do anything, we can do that."  
Dirk smiled a little nervously, and nodded.  
"I guess I can try."

***

The four of them headed to Bergsberg on Saturday afternoon, Mona sprawled across the backseat as a labrador, her head on Dirk's lap. Todd and Farah took turns driving, and every time Dirk volunteered to help he got refused.  
"They're silly," he muttered to Mona, patting her behind the ears. She wagged her tail contentedly, bounding out of the car when they parked. She raced straight up to Hobbs, who embraced her and then waved over Dirk and the others.  
"You made it! It's great to see you all, thank you for coming!" He grinned. "We've made a start on the Barbecue, and I've got my sofabed set up for you boys, I think the girls are going with Tina tonight if that's okay? And we can do marshmallows this evening, Dirk have you ever had smores?"  
"I have," Dirk answered cautiously.

"Excellent. We can have smores that are better than anything you've had before, because I swear, extra chocolate, it makes all the difference. And Tina and I...we're just real happy you got here. Thanks for coming to see us!"

With that he started ushering them towards the station with offers of coffee. Dirk glanced at Farah, startled to see how brightly she was smiling as she followed Hobbs inside. He could feel that he was smiling as well. He could barely remember his own dad, and Riggins wasn't his father for all he had pretended to be. But he had his own kind of family now, and that made all of the difference. Todd squeezed his hand.  
"Come on, or Farah will have eaten the best cookies."


	8. Fourth of July

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mona has her own unique ideas for celebration.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *hums "Firework"*

"No, Mona." Dirk's voice was the first thing Todd heard as he pushed open the door to the agency, and he seriously considered backing out again. He took a deep breath, reminded himself he had years of older-brother-experience to fall back on, and walked through into the office, trying to brace himself for whatever Mona was trying to be this time. 

He hoped it wasn't a dragon again - he'd only just got new sneakers after she'd burned the last set.

"But it's festive," Mona whispered, sitting on Dirk's desk in her human-shape and swinging her legs. "It's important to celebrate and be festive."  
"You... you might get hurt," Dirk pleaded, and then he saw Todd and his face lit up. "Todd. Brilliant. In your role as wonderful assistant and boyfriend, I have a task for you."  
"What?" Todd asked, still wondering if coming in was a mistake.  
"I need you to persuade Mona that the best use of her admittedly impressive acting abilities is being something other than a firework for this evening."

"A... firework?"  
"Dirk didn't buy any," Mona explained. "And it's traditional, isn't it? It's nice, and it's a special day for you and Farah and..." She blinked slowly, tilting her head and looking at Todd. "Am I American?"  
"Uh..." Dirk frowned. "Do you want to be American?"  
"Am I allowed to be your sister if I'm American?"  
"You are allowed to be my sister no matter what," Dirk promised, and she beamed at him, leaning over to cuddle him tightly before she continued.   
"Okay! So it's traditional for me and Farah and Todd!"

"No..." Dirk muttered, and then Todd cleared his throat, daring to launch into Mona-Logic. Mona Logic was dangerous territory, but sometimes it was the only way to convince her. You just had to be very sure of your own stance, and not let her twist you into agreeing.  
"Mona, if you're American, then the fireworks are for you as well, aren't they?"  
"Yes!" she said, bouncing a little.  
"Well if you're a firework, you can't watch the fireworks. You'll need to not be one so you can watch."

Mona tilted her head to the side, clearly deep in thought. After a few moments she nodded, smiling at Todd.  
"Okay, I guess that makes sense!"  
Dirk stared at Todd in wonder. Todd winked, and then frowned as he heard his phone ring with the tone he had set for Amanda. He pulled it from his pocket.  
"Hello?"  
"Hey you." Amanda sounded happy, or possibly slightly high, but either way she wasn't mad at him so he counted this as a win. "I was wondering if you were in Seattle right now?"  
"Yeah?" Todd frowned. "Dirk and I are. And Farah and Tina are at Farah’s today-"  
"Awesome. Okay, we're coming over soon. You are gonna come with us, and we can find somewhere to let off fireworks."

"...Amanda, are you asking me to persuade Tina and Farah to get into your van when it’s both full of fireworks and crowded? Because that could end badly."  
"Good point." Amanda sighed. "I suppose it's probably better she drives her own car there." With that, the line went dead.

"Amanda and her boys are coming with fireworks" Todd told Dirk, and Mona squeaked in delight.  
"You were right!" she said, and Todd nodded. He wasn't entirely sure that he was, in the most technical sense, right. But Mona was no longer planning on casually exploding herself, and that seemed to be the important thing.

Dirk reached out to take his hand.  
"That sounds fun. And we can roast marshmallows, and have a barbecue, and... do we have to have flags? Flags are kind of boring but-"  
"Marshmallows are good," Todd interrupted, before Dirk could get himself into a state. "Marshmallows and flags and maybe some drinks, and some food..." 

Todd had never been one for family parties, and Dirk identified as English (despite the issues that necessarily entailed). However, the thought of celebrating by Dirk's side just felt right.  
"Hey, Dirk?"  
"What?"  
"You can celebrate your independence if you want, today." He tried to sound casual with the suggestion, but by the way Dirk's face lit up he liked the suggestion as much as Todd had hoped.

"What a brilliant idea Todd."

***

That evening, as they watched the fireworks paint the sky, Dirk cuddled up in his arms and Mona sitting on the ground as a plushie dog, Todd had to admit that this wasn't a bad celebration. 

For Dirk, being free was a big thing, and Todd liked being there to share the moment with him. He leaned his head on Dirk's shoulder, and Dirk squeezed his hand. Another firework exploded, and Todd managed not to flinch, watching the Rowdies playing. Farah was curled up on Tina a short distance away. 

It felt pretty perfect, and Todd thought that next year, with proper planning, he could make it even better for them.


End file.
